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World News Updates
I've been following two news stories over past few weeks that have been weighing on my mind- the Jena 6 and the protests in Myanmar.
The military junta in Myanmar unexpectedly raised fuel prices to upwards of 500% last month, making it impossible for the largely working class populations to even take the bus to work. People have been forced to stay home because they can't afford to pay for transportation and food and gas prices have also risen.
In response to economic hardships, protests that began on August 19 have continued up to the present despite attempts by the government to crack down on protesters. So far, the government has arrested all known activists that have not already gone into hiding, believing that this would curtail the movement. Unfortunately for them, Buddhist monks in Yangon and other cities have joined the march over the past week.
It has been almost two decades since the 1988 pro-democracy uprising in Myanmar and the protests are a welcome sign that Burmese residents are not complacent and still willing to fight against the military regime. The US and other European countries have placed sanctions against Myanmar but those have been largely ineffective because Myanmar is able to trade with neighboring countries in Southeast Asia and with China and India.
I am worried/scared about how the Burmese government will react to the continued marches. They haven't been afraid to murder peaceful citizens in the past to get their way. Myanmar is a very religious country and so the Buddhist monks marching in the streets have helped the protests gain momentum and the government is getting antsy. The regime has mostly ignored the protests, probably fearing a backlash for attacking such a peaceful and religious group.
The government as of today has released its first official warning against the protesting monks and others. Violence is expected to break out tomorrow.
A friend of mine forwarded this press release to me this morning:
Media Release from Burma Campaign UK
Burma Campaign UK sources in Rangoon have reported that soldiers have been ordered to shave their heads, in possible preparation for infiltrating peaceful demonstrations. They would start rioting or attacking police, providing the regime with a pretext for a brutal crackdown on protestors.Sources indicate that soldiers from Light Battalion 77 in Rangoon have been given the order. Sources also report that the regime has ordered 3,000 monks robes from a factory in Rangoon.
It is a tactic the regime has used in the past, including at the Depayin massacre in 2003, during which Aung San Suu Kyi was arrested. Regime militia dressed as monks were involved in the ambush which left up to 100 democracy activists dead. State television today reported that action would be taken against protestors.
"We know from experience that the regime is capable of opening fire on civilians", said Mark Farmaner, acting Director of Burma Campaign UK. The regime came to power on the back of a massacre in 1988 that left at least 3,000 civilians dead. They have also been accused by the UN of breaking the Geneva Convention for their deliberate targeting of civilians in attacks on ethnic minorities.
Despite the widespread expectations that the regime will use violence to suppress protest, the international community has been remarkably silent, with the French government being the only one to make a strong statement warning of consequences if the regime respond with violence.
ASEAN has also expressed concern. "The regime has been held in check by the peoples' respect for the monks and the fact that the world is watching, but the scale of
protests means they will be looking for options that allow them to justify a crackdown," said Mark Farmaner, "The UN Secretary General and other world leaders must speak out and make it clear that a violent response in unacceptable. At the moment the international community seems to be willing to watch from the sidelines as the regime moves closer to a massacre. If the regime does attack protestors, this will have been one of the most widely predicted massacres in recent history, and makes a mockery any government's claim to be committed to human rights."
The Burmese Association at Berkeley is going to meet tonight to talk about the recent news. We are excited that something is happening, that we might be on a path to revolution but at the same time very worried because we still have family back in Burma.
In other news, I am helping facilitate a DeCal class at Berkeley this semester, looking at racism and structural inequities in the education system and seeing what possible solutions exists to these problems.
I've been disturbed about what I've heard of the Jena Six case in Louisiana and allegations of resegregation occurring in Alabaman schools.
I don't know what to do about any of these events. There have been a lot of discussions and a protest was held on campus last Thursday calling for the release of the Jena 6 but it's not enough.
